Just South of Heaven
by ocfairygodmother
Summary: Genesis Martinez, a former FBI technical analyst, finds herself in the Good Place. There, she meets her soul mate, Canadian father-of-the-year Ryan Kelley, Taiwanese monk Jianyu, ethics professor Chidi Anagonye, British philanthropist Tahani Al-Jamil, lawyer Eleanor Shellstrop, Janet, and Michael. Things seem perfect, but soon they start to go awry. What the fork is going on?
1. Chapter 1

'Welcome! Everything is fine.

Genesis Martinez stared at those bright green words painted on the wall in front of her. Her brow furrowed a little as she turned her head from side to side, taking in her surroundings. This wasn't her home nor was it her office at the FBI. She had never seen this strange place before. At least, not that she could remember. Despite the words on the wall before her, everything certainly did not seem fine. Where was she? How did she get here? Had she been drugged? Was she being held, hostage?

She rubbed her temples. Because of her job and the terrible things she saw in her line of work, she could easily jump to the worst conclusion. Genesis inhaled deeply before slowly releasing her breath, attempting to calm herself as her counselor had taught her many years ago. She closed her eyes and then began to focus on her feet. They were touching the ground. Slowly she worked her way up her body, visualizing her legs, her stomach, her head before making her way back down.

When she opened her eyes, there was an older gentleman dressed sharply in a suit standing in the now open doorway to her left. "Genesis? Come on in," he told her. The man motioned for her to follow him in with a smile plastered on his face.

While she knew murderers could come in many shapes and forms, he didn't strike her as one, so she stood up and followed him into the room. The room she walked into turned out to be just an ordinary office. There was a desk with two chairs in front of it and one chair behind it. There were windows allowing light to stream in, plants to liven the place up, and a picture of someone named Doug Forcett on the wall. But why was she here? She had no recollection of how or why she would come here.

"Have a seat," he said motioning to a chair on the other side of his desk.

Genesis sat down on the chair closest to the window. If he _was_ a murderer, he would expect her to run for the door at the first sign of trouble, but she would rather try her luck with the window first..._if _he was indeed a murderer. One always had to be careful. She pulled her long brown locks behind her ears as the man sat down behind the desk. Dammit. She hadn't meant to do that.

"Hi, Genesis. I'm Michael," he greeted her as he folded his hands on his desk, another smile brightening his face. "How are you today?"

She narrowed her eyes and then blinked rapidly. She resisted the urge to tuck her hair behind her ear again like she almost always did when she was nervous. Morgan had pointed that fact out to her, so he consciously made an effort not to give too much away to the stranger...or at least she would try. "A bit confused. Where am I?"

Michael chuckled to himself and folded his arms across his chest. "I suppose you're rather suspicious of me, aren't you? I'm not a murderer, Genesis."

Her eyes widened and then narrowed again. She folded her arms across her chest to match Michael's defensive position. How did he know...

"How did I know that you were thinking that?" Michael smirked at her, almost like he actually had read her mind. "You were one of the best FBI technical analysts. I've done my research."

Genesis glanced toward the window, tapping her fingers against the arm of the chair. Another sign of nervousness. She clenched her hands into fists. She had worked with some of the most brilliant minds in profiling, she should know better.

"Not to worry, Genesis. There are no murderers here, in the Good Place."

"The Good Place?" What sort of sick joke was this?

Michael straightened his posture and looked at her directly. "Genesis, there is no easy to say this, but...your life on Earth has ended and you are now in the next phase of your existence...in the Good Place."

"Wait, what?" Her mind was reeling, pushing forward at a hundred miles a minute. "I'm…no. That's not possible. I can't be..."

"Dead. Yes, yes you are." Michael sighed, a grandfatherly sigh before he continued. "You were driving on your way to testify in court when someone spilled their coffee in their lap, causing them to run a red light, colliding on the driver's side of your vehicle. I'm so sorry."

It was almost as if the memory hit her as she spoke. She remembered seeing the red vehicle coming toward her...and the next thing she knew she was sitting in the other room. "Wow. Oh, wow," Genesis muttered, rubbing her face. She sat there for a moment. She felt like she should be freaking out more. So, internally, she started freaking out about the fact that she wasn't freaking out more. She was dead! Shouldn't she be making a bigger deal out of this? Where did he say she was again? Heaven? Hell? She couldn't recall either of those words. Where the fork was she?

"Take a deep breath," Michael said. "Your reaction is perfectly normal."

Genesis inhaled deeply and did the same exercise she did outside the office. She closed her eyes and began to focus on her feet.

"I'm sorry," Michael groaned, the agony evident in his voice. "You're my first."

"Excuse me?" Genesis gasped opening her eyes, in the middle of her calming exercise. His first? His first what?

Michael sighed in front of her and slumped in his chair a bit. "You're the first person I've ever broken the news to. I can see I'm going to need to practice more before the next arrival. You see, this is my first time designing a neighborhood in the Good Place."

"What's the Good Place?" Genesis asked.

"Well, now, the afterlife isn't the heaven or hell idea you were raised on."

Genesis groaned and threw her head back. "So, all those years of going to church with my Abuelita were for nothing?"

"I wouldn't say for nothing, Genesis. They helped earn you enough points to get into the Good Place, which I suppose you could say is the afterlife equivalent of heaven, just different. There are no pearly gates or streets paved with gold, but everything here is perfect because I designed it to be so."

She blinked slowly trying to take in the information Michael seemed to be spewing at her.

Michael sighed. "I can see you're skeptical. Given your life on earth, I can understand that. How about I show you what I mean? What is it you humans say? Seeing is the pathway to the belief of what is the absolute truth?"

"Something like that," Genesis responded, scratching her neck. If Morgan could have been here, he would have mocked her mercilessly for all her tell-tale signs of nervousness. There was a reason she was a technical analyst and not a profiler nor a criminal mastermind.

"So you'll join me?" Michael asked gently, a pleading expression on his face.

Genesis nodded her head and Michael clapped his hands excitedly like a little kid in a toy store for the first time. He then stood and opened his office door, motioning for her to follow him. Genesis slowly exhaled and followed him again. She still wasn't sure whether to trust him or not. But she was hoping that someone would pop out and tell her that this was some sort of joke. A sick one, but still a joke.

Michael opened a door outside, the sunlight was almost blinding as they stepped outside. Genesis shielded her eyes with her hands trying to block out the sun, but that didn't stop her from sneezing. Once. Twice. Three times. Darn photic sneeze reflex.

Michael chuckled before she spread his arms out proudly and did a twirl. "What do you think? Not bad for my first time, huh?"

Finally able to actually see, Genesis looked around at what Michael was trying to show her. They were in some sort of town square area. There appeared to be tiny shops and restaurants...as well as many, many frozen yogurt places. Why would one place need so many frozen yogurt places? But Michael looked so proud of his work. She didn't have the heart to point that out. Instead, she pointed to the fountain. "I love that," she told him genuinely with a smile on her face.

Michael once again clapped excitedly. "I'm so glad you like it. My boss was thought it frivolous, but I said it was a must."

"And you were right." Genesis offered Michael another reassuring smile with a thumbs-up. Sure, for the afterlife, if that's what this actually was, a fountain was probably frivolous...but it was less ostentatious than streets of gold and rivers of milk and honey. For Michael's first time, it truly wasn't _that_ bad. Not to mention, people needed to be built-up, not torn down, on their first venture out into something new and unknown. She was doing the right thing. Just as she had done almost all her life.

Michael breathed a sigh of relief. "You have no idea how relieved I am that you like it. I was getting worried. Good thing you were my first." He patted Genesis on the shoulder rather exuberantly, nearly knocking her over.

"So, tell me more about the neighborhood," Genesis said, taking a small step away from Michael.

"Oh! That's right. I still have some convincing to do." Michael rubbed his hands together. "So, this is how it works. The Good Place is divided into distinct neighborhoods. Each one contains 322 people who have been perfectly selected to blend together into a blissful harmonic balance."

"Do all neighborhoods look similar to this? I mean, I'm guessing the fountain isn't in all of them, but the rest of it…"

"No, every neighborhood is unique. Some have warm weather, some cold. Some are cities, some farmland. But in each one, every blade of grass, every ladybug, every detail has been precisely designed and calibrated for its residents."

"Huh, interesting."

Michael then looked behind his back and leaned close to Genesis with his hand shielding his mouth. "But between you and me, there are frozen yogurt places in every neighborhood. You humans love your frozen yogurt."

"Froyo should have had its own spot on the food pyramid," Genesis joked.

"Well, in the Good Place, it does!" Michael said and Genesis was pretty sure he was serious about that fact. There was a dinging noise that made Michael jump a bit. He placed his hand over his heart and laughed.

"What's that noise mean?" Genesis asked.

"A new resident," Michael said rather proudly.

She blinked slowly and Michael's smile didn't fade as he led her to the village green in the middle of the town with rows and rows of folding chairs, sort of like an outdoor auditorium. "Why don't you find a good seat before they all start filling up. I'd recommend the second row for optimal viewing pleasure." He winked at her.

"Why? What for?"

Michael chuckled. "The movie will begin once I've greeted all the residents. But not to worry, it shouldn't take long. Time moves differently in the afterlife. Although, I probably shouldn't have told you that."

Genesis smiled. His oversharing, seemed to reassure her For some reason, she found herself easily trusting Michael. He was like the grandfather she had always wanted but had never gotten to experience.

"Go on, find a seat," Michael told her. "And afterward, I'll show you your forever home."

Genesis smiled. She had always wanted a forever home. She had lived in apartments for as long as she could remember. She had been so focused on her career that she had never gotten around to finding a house to own. She turned to say something to Michael, but he had disappeared, off to greet the new resident.

She had just picked out a seat when about a dozen more residents showed up. Michael was right. Time really was different here. Much more fluid. The guy next to her was wearing a nametag that said Hello my name is: Glen. They had barely finished their introductions when Genesis suddenly realized that all the chairs were filled.

Suddenly a screen appeared in the air from nowhere.

"I love movies," Glen leaned over to her and whispered.

Genesis nodded her head, wanting to watch the movie instead of converse with Glen.

Michael suddenly appeared on the screen and began talking. "Hello, everyone. And welcome to your first day in the afterlife. You were all, simply put, good people. But how do we know that you were good? How are we sure? During your time on Earth, every one of your actions had a positive or negative value, depending on how much good or bad that action put into the universe. Every sandwich you ate, every time you bought a magazine, every single thing you did had an effect that rippled out over time and ultimately created some amount of good or bad. You know how people pull into the breakdown lane when there's traffic? And they think to themselves, "Ah who cares? No one's watching" We were watching. Surprise"

Genesis went rigid for a moment. Every action? But then she realized that she was in the Good Place. The points she had earned still weighed heavily in her favor, so much so, to earn a spot in the Good Place.

"Anyway, when your time on Earth has ended, we calculate the total value of your life using our perfectly accurate measuring system. Only people with the highest scores, the true cream of the crop get to come here, to the Good Place. What happens to everyone else, you ask? Don't worry about it. The point is, you are here because you lived one of the very best lives that could be lived and you won't be alone. Your true soul mate is here too."

Genesis' eyes widened. She had also been too career-driven to find much time to date, let alone settle down. The last time she had been in love was probably high school. So, she was actually excited about the prospect of finding a soul mate. Someone she could share her afterlife with.

"That's right. Soulmates are real. One of the other people in your neighborhood is your actual soul mate, and you will spend eternity together. So welcome to the Good Place. Sponsored by: otters holding hands while they sleep. You know the way you feel when you see a picture of two otters holding hands? That's the way you're gonna feel every day."

The screen went away. Genesis relaxed a bit in her seat and smiled. Everything really was fine.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you to those of you who took the time to read this. It means a lot. This is the first story I've been able to update since I started taking meds for anxiety and depression and started counseling. It will be a journey, so please be patient with me. I will update what I can, but my mental health comes first.**

**You can find me on tumblr at: ocfairygodmother and if you love OCs check out ocappreciation! **

**Much love!**


	2. Chapter 2

_Welcome! Everything is Fine._

Ryan Kelley skeptically eyed the words painted in green on the wall. He shifted his position on the couch, spreading his legs out a little farther. Manspreading his ex-wife had called it. Whatever. Screw her. Well...technically, he had already done that.

_Welcome! Everything is Fine._

Was it though? Ryan narrowed his eyes. Those seemed exactly like the sort of words you say when things _aren't_ fine. He drummed his fingers against his legs, trying to figure out how he had gotten there. The best he could come up with was that had gotten drunk again and his old high school buddies thought it would be funny to drop him off there to see if he could get home. It was almost a monthly ritual with them.

The place seemed like some sort of old people's place. Maybe that was the reason for the _inspirational_ message. Ryan exhaled slowly. Welp, he'd had enough of this place. At least this time he hadn't stripped naked in his sleep. That had made for an interesting run-in with the locals. He chuckled remembering. Good times. Good times.

Ryan stood up and walked toward the door. His hand had just barely gripped the handle when behind him, a male voice said, "Ryan."

He winced. So close.

Following a sigh, Ryan forced a smile on his face and turned around. Yep. Definitely an old people's place. There was a sharply dressed elderly dude with white hair and glasses. Ryan had no idea who the guy was, but if the guy knew his name then he had likely met him at some point. He was just probably drunk at the time. This wasn't his first time in a situation like this and he was pretty sure it wouldn't be his last. His buddies were going to get an earful later.

Ryan chuckled and put on the charm like he usually did in this sort of situation. He walked toward the guy with his arms open for a hug. "Buddy! What's up?" Ryan laughed as he walked up to the man and threw his arms around him in a big bear hug. The man stood there unsure of how to respond as Ryan squeezed a little tighter, patting the man on the back before pulling away. "How've ya been, dude?"

The man straightened his askew tie. "I've been well, Ryan," the man answered.

"Good to hear, man. Good to hear," Ryan smiled as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Good to see you too, but I really gotta jet…" Ryan nodded his head toward the door on the opposite wall.

The nicely dressed man sighed. "Ryan, why don't you come to my office for a minute first."

"You know, man, I would but…"

The older man placed his hand on Ryan's shoulder. "Ryan, this news is better taken sitting down."

Ryan looked over his shoulder. This didn't quite look like the place they had taken Grandma Yvonne to, but they could have remodeled since he had last seen her...like five years ago? And if he had ended up here, perhaps Grandma Yvonne had passed and left him a nice sum of money. Grandma Yvonne always did have a soft spot for him and last he knew, she was loaded.

"Okay, dude," Ryan agreed before he followed the guy inside his office.

Ryan sat down in a chair at the older man's insistence. He crossed his right foot over his left leg so that it looked like the number four before the other guy sat down. "So, what's up?" Ryan asked.

The man exhaled slowly, folding his hands on his desk. He glanced down at them before looking back up at Ryan. "There's no easy way to tell you this…" Michael started before Ryan interrupted.

"It's all good, dude. Grandma Yvonne lived a nice long life. I kinda figured that's what this would be about when you asked me in here."

The man stared blankly for a moment.

"So, how much did she leave me?" Ryan asked. "Pretty sure I forgot to pay my tab last night if you know what I mean." Ryan winked.

The man wasn't sure what Ryan meant. Instead, he sighed. "I'm afraid you're gravely mistaken," the other man said. His tone was deathly serious "Your grandmother isn't dead. You are, Ryan."

Ryan stared blankly at the man on the other side of the desk blinking slowly before he started laughing. "You almost had me for a minute there, man. Almost. Who put you up to this? Was it Will? It was Will, wasn't it? This totally seems like something Will would do. I'm gonna kick his ash the next time I see him." Ryan paused and looked at the man. "Did I just say ash? I meant ash."

Ryan's eyes widened.

"What the fork?"

His eyes widened even more.

"Why the fork can't I forking cuss?"

The man on the other side of the desk sighed again. "Why don't we try this again. Hi, my name is Michael and there is no easy way to tell you this. But your life on earth has ended and you are now in the next phase of your existence. Welcome to the Good Place."

Ryan was slow at processing Michael's words. He was dead? He shook his head. No. That wasn't possible. He looked down and examined himself. He was a fairly healthy dude in his thirties. He was good looking.

"I know this is a lot to take in…" Michael said from across the desk.

"Not really, because it's not true." Ryan folded his arms across his chest. "But I'll play your little game, Mikey and when this is done I'm going home and passing out on the couch after a beer or two, maybe even three or four. Whatever floats my boat."

"Ryan, you really are dead."

"Yeah? Then how did I die?" Ryan's tone was cocky, daring Michael to come up with something.

"Crossing the U.S. border."

Ryan scoffed. "Now I know you're lying. I've never been to that part of the country. I'm not a fan of deserts or Mexican food. Try again."

"The Canadian border, Ryan. You died trying to illegally cross the Canadian border."

Ryan threw his head back and laughed. "Like is that even possible? Who dies trying to get into Canada? "

"You did, Ryan. I didn't want to have to do this, but you've left me no choice." Michael sighed and then snapped his fingers.

As he leaned back in his chair, Ryan's eyes widened as it hit him like a freight train. "Whoa. Holy shirt, man. What the fork was that?'

"You died trying to save some drunk idiot. Earned you a lot of points, Ryan. Enough to get you into the Good Place."

Ryan arched an eyebrow. That wasn't quite how the memory had played out in his mind But that wouldn't be the first time his mind had played a trick on him while drunk. He shrugged and smiled. He sat forward and slapped his knees. "Now, c'mon, Mikey, tell me more about the Good Place. I'm assuming it's a good place, right?"

"The name gives it away, doesn't it?" Michael responded, leaning back in his chair.

"Just a little," Ryan said holding his thumb and index finger up spread only a short distance.

Michael laughed. "Well, the answer is yes. You've lived an extraordinary life, Ryan, and because of that, you got into the Good Place."

"Cool. Cool."

An awkward silence overcame the two of them. Ryan stared at Michael. Michael stared at Ryan. Ryan began to bounce his leg causing the chair he was sitting in to rattle. Michael inhaled slowly. Ryan nodded his head.

"So, now what?" Ryan asked, breaking the silence.

"How about a walk?" Michael said practically jumping out of his chair. "You were the last resident I was waiting on. I can show you the neighborhood on our way to the assembly."

"What kind of assembly is this?" Ryan asked skeptically.

"It's just a little welcome to the neighborhood thing."

"You know, that doesn't sound like my scene, man." Ryan leaned further back in his chair, stretching his legs out.

Michael smiled. "There'll be a movie."

Ryan mulled that over for a minute. "Will there be popcorn?"

Michael started at Ryan blankly. It appeared he was being serious. Michael's smile grew. "There can be."

Ryan shrugged his shoulders. "All right, dude." He stood up.

"Janet?" Michael called.

_Bing!_

Suddenly, a woman was standing in front of them.

"What the fork?" Ryan gasped. "Who are you?"

"Hi! I'm Janet!" the woman said, much too cheerfully, as she waved.

Ryan looked quizzically at Michael.

"This is Janet," Michael said.

"You know, I got _that_ much, dude." Ryan scoffed with his arms folded across his chest.

"Janet is the information assistant here in the Good Place. You might say he is a walking database with all the knowledge of the universe. She can also retrieve whatever it is you need. Watch." Michael cleared his throat. "Janet, one bag of popcorn, please."

_Bing!_

A bag of popcorn immediately appeared in Janet's hand. "Here you are. One bag of popcorn," Janet said as she handed the bag to Michael.

Michael laughed and handed the bag over to Ryan. "Thanks, dude!" Ryan chuckled. He took a piece of popcorn and popped it in his mouth. He savored it for a moment.

"Janet one movie popcorn butter machine, please!" Ryan asked.

_Bing!_

A movie popcorn butter machine appeared on Michael's desk.

"Score! Thanks, Janet!" Ryan called as he ran the few steps over to the desk. He put his bag of popcorn under the nozzle and pressed the button. He moved the bag around and then stopped. Ryan looked over his shoulder at Michael. "Wait a minute. I'm dead. It's not gonna kill me. MIght as well. Bottoms up!" He started the butter again, putting more on than someone should be allowed.

"Ready?" Michael asked gesturing toward the door.

"You know what would go with this popcorn? A beer." Ryan then turned to Janet again, who was standing perfectly still with a large smile on her face. "Janet, Schell's Firebrick me."

_Bing!_

A Schell's Firebrick Vienna-Style Amber Lager appeared in Janet's hand and then she handed it to Ryan. He popped the can open and took a sip before looking at Michael. "_Now_, I'm ready." Ryan grinned.

"Good," Michael said with a smile.

Ryan paid no attention as Michael explained things to him as they walked. Seeing as both of his hands were full, Ryan stuck his face in the bag of popcorn with his mouth open and then closed it to eat the buttery goodness. He looked around at the buildings as he chewed. Many of them were froyo places. What the fork was froyo? He shrugged. He had the rest of eternity to find out.

By the time they got to the town square, only one seat remained, right in the front row, second from the end. Who leaves one spot second from the end? That was his move. Michael pointed for him to sit down, so he did. Ryan took a sip of beer before he set it beneath his chair. Then he used his free hand to pop a handful of popcorn in his mouth. Where was this movie supposed to play? He didn't see a screen.

Suddenly, a screen appeared out of thin air and the view even from his angle was surprisingly good. Not that he cared much for what was playing on the screen. It was Michael talking again. Blah. Blah. Blah. Although, the otters were rather cute if he was being honest. Ryan wondered if Janet could get him a pet otter.

Then the movie was over. The screen disappeared and Michael appeared on the stage. He told them to just mosy about the neighborhood until he found them. Michael would then direct them to their forever home. Ryan couldn't help but roll his eyes. This was beyond cheesy.

Ryan grabbed his beer and hoped to make a quick escape, but Michael called his name. "Fork," Ryan muttered under his breath. He forced a smile and turned to face Michael who was walking toward him with a cute gal in tow. Ryan took another sip of his beer.

Michael smiled. "Ryan, meet your soulmate, Genesis."

* * *

**Author's Note: Just a reminder that I know Ryan is a scumbag. I don't condone his actions or thoughts. It just gives him room for growth in my story. But I do have to say that Ryan is fun to write. Haha. Thank you so much to those of you who have read my story. **

**A big thank you to my reviewers (Check their stuff out too):**

**FFN: **BarbyChan4Ever, NatBBfan, RandomFandoming1, Nicole Beverly234, Randomestfandoms, marysuewhipple

**WATTPAD:** ohhittherekatie

**AO3:** EddyS


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